Oxfordshire County Council to pay mum £5,000 over son's education

A council has been told to pay an autistic boy's mother £5,000 to make up for 12 months' education he missed when he became too anxious to attend school.

Oxfordshire County Council said he received appropriate online education from the school when he did not attend from June 2021 to February 2022.

But the mum asked the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman (LGSCO) to investigate Oxfordshire County Council.

It found the lack of direct teaching was unsuitable for the boy's needs.

The ombudsman also said he received no education at all between February and June 2022.

It also found fault with the way the council requested medical evidence to show why the boy could not attend school, which it said was contrary to guidance.

Its investigation also criticised a six-month delay while the council carried out a needs assessment to create an education, health and care plan (EHCP) for him, stating it should have taken 20 weeks.

The LGSCO was also critical of the way the council handled the mother's complaints, including delays and poor communication.

Michael King, LGSO head, said: "Councils have a duty to ensure alternative education is provided and they cannot delegate this duty to schools or other providers."

He said he had issued a special report about the issue earlier this year and was "disappointed Oxfordshire County Council has not accepted the recommendations".

Mr King said the council should pay the mum a further £1,000 "to acknowledge the distress, and avoidable time and trouble and impact on her ability to work, caused by the council's faults".

It should also pay her £2,200 to reimburse the cost of an educational psychologist, he added.

In a statement, Oxfordshire County Council said it had apologised to the mother and her son.

It said: "[His] education and well-being is important to us, as is our commitment to every child and young person in the county. We are determined to give them the very best start in life.

"We have already started to implement the measures requested by the Ombudsman and will continue to do so.

"We're introducing an information system that links schools and education teams better. This represents a significant investment in the well-being of every child in Oxfordshire."

It said it would also deliver briefings and training to school leaders and council officers and regularly review them.

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